While the Pokemon Go craze has passed, augmented reality (AR) is here to stay. If the Nintendo-Google venture taught us anything, it's that AR applications are only just beginning.
From gamifying shopping to creating hands-on educational materials, AR has huge potential for many industries. Below, seven members of Forbes Technology Council offer their insights into consumer-based uses for augmented reality that we should all be keeping an eye on.
1. How-to Tutorials
There are a magnitude of ways AR can enhance the life of the consumer: It could show you how to build a table, fix your car, troubleshoot your computer — the opportunities are endless. - Pin Chen, ONTRAPORT
2. Merging Physical And Digital Storefront
Augmented Reality could help even the least impressive-looking brick and mortar storefront define the company's brand. Imagine waving your phone over a storefront and swiping to see menus, reviews, social media, discounts and more without even walking through the door. It would boost engagement and ultimately foot traffic for the busy passerby gathering ideas for the weekend. - Gurpreet Singh, TalkLocal
3. Shopping Gamification
AR combined with the big data it can produce can be used in a number of ways, including location-based marketing, interactive shopping experiences, and deal finding in malls. This can also be used for the gamification of shopping. We're already seeing brick and mortar stores offering discounts or parks offering free admission to Pokemon players to get traffic! - Arash Asli, Yocale
4. Enhanced Shopping Experiences
I think assistance in fitting rooms and retail stores will be a big market for AR. Something like an enhanced shopping experience that allows you to try on clothes without the effort of physically changing into them. My company is already starting to integrate AR technologies like this into its Point-of-Sale system for retail stores. - Chris Ciabarra, Revel Systems INC
5. E-Commerce And Apparel Shopping
Companies like Zappos allow you to order unlimited pairs of shoes with two-way free shipping. Once you get your shipment, you get to decide whether or not you like the shoes and send back what you don't like, free. A more efficient alternative to costly return shipping might be if Zappos used AR to allow customers to virtually try on shoes ahead of time in different location and apparel combos. - Scott Stiner, UM Technologies, LLC
6. Hands On Education
AR has the potential to be huge for education. Using AR, students can have uniform “hands on” and realistic experiences for whatever they are learning, further enriching existing course material. Depending on the application, this can save huge amounts of money on physical materials and include real-life simulations that were not available before. - Andrew Kucheriavy, Intechnic
